The communication of data over communication networks often involves encoding and decoding the data. Many different coding schemes have been developed for use in encoding and decoding data. One conventional coding scheme is 64B/66B coding, which is defined in the IEEE 802.3 standard for use in networks like ten-gigabit Ethernet networks. The 64B/66B coding scheme is used for physical coding sublayer (PCS) encoding and decoding of data.
In the 64B/66B coding scheme, eight ten-gigabit media independent interface (XGMII) octets are encoded into a 66-bit encoded data block, which is transferred over a single physical medium attachment (PMA) in 16-bit transfers. Similarly, eight XGMII octets are decoded from a 66-bit encoded data block, which is received over a single physical medium attachment in 16-bit transfers. A physical medium attachment typically supports access to a physical transmission medium, such as printed circuit board (PCB) tracks or lanes. The physical medium attachment may be responsible, for example, for serializing and de-serializing data between the physical transmission medium and the physical coding sublayer.